We hunger and thirst for lives that are more fully alive. God, Author of Life, please lead us there.

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Will We Blush In Heaven?

Blunder. Public notice. Embarrassment. Shame. The laughing voices feel tortuous. A flash of heat tells you that your face is now glowing red. "Great," you think to yourself. Now you're thoroughly exposed. You utter a nervous & inauthentic laugh from the impulse to join the others; but quickly stop for the pain. Your mind races for what to do or say that will set it all right; but it's too late for that. All you want is a place to hide.

Blushing is in our physiology. It's a universal, involuntary sympathetic nervous system response caused by the dilation of the small blood vessels in the face... nowhere else... just the face... the part of you people look at... the part of you that is responsible for emotional expression. Blushing is physiologically distinguishable from other types of facial flushing, such as that caused by consumption of alcohol, arousal, or hormonally induced flashes which are not caused by beta-adrenergic stimulation. In other words, it's a special function embedded in our DNA that is programmed to be easily noticeable.

So, why? Why did God make us to blush? Is it a communication tool? Something to let others know that we're feeling overly exposed & could use a little sensitivity? Will we blush in heaven?

1 comment:

Blushing is the plague of my life! I can remember my first blushing experience when I nearly fell asleep in class in 7th grade... it's followed me ever since! It's proving to be a genetic trait - I found out my grandmother was a blusher and my kids suffer with their faces aglow occasionally.

It comes on at the worst possible times, sometimes for no obvious reason!? Avoiding the spotlight at all costs, a blusher suffers in solitude. I love the times that it's not a problem. When I'm comfortable with the person or group. But other times I feel like a deer ready to take flight at any moment... which can make getting emotionally close with others very difficult. Or, if it happens in a professional setting, the person you're talking to may not take you seriously or think of you as a competent colleague. I've even had men think I'm fond of them because my cheeks turned red in their presence... which usually has NOTHING to do with sexual attraction... quite the opposite.

I've hit my knee's many times begging God to take it away but he's allowed it to remain for some reason. For now I just keep praying and asking God to heal this odd phenomena. I also try not to to give it any power or foothold in my life... ignoring it and moving on.

There is actually a website dedicated to people who suffer from blushing. Story after story about people who have suffered from this problem. Check it out: